The dust finally settled.
Silence flooded the collapsed corridor behind them like a held breath.
Kai still held Lina protectively, the last tremors of the collapse humming through his body. He gently set her down once the shaking stopped — but didn't let go of her hand.
Reyon panted, bent over with his hands on his knees."Well.We're alive.Again.Barely.Could someone PLEASE tell the universe we've done enough dying for today?"
Seren didn't laugh.She didn't even smile.
She stared at the darkness behind them, eyes wide and haunted.
Lina stepped closer. "Seren… what did you hear? When the entity spoke?"
Seren swallowed hard. "…Too much."
Kai placed a gentle hand on Lina's back. "We should move. The Archives are shifting."
He was right.The corridor had subtly changed — walls weren't aligned the way they were before.Lanterns flickered faintly, glowing with cold bluish light.
Seren whispered, "It's guiding us… somewhere."
Reyon snorted. "Well that's comforting. Nothing says 'safety' like a haunted maze."
But Lina wasn't listening.
Her flame flared suddenly — a sharp, hot pulse from the center of her chest.
Kai turned instantly. "Lina?"
She grabbed his arm. "My flame… just reacted."
"To what?" he asked softly.
She looked around the corridor, heart pounding.
It reacted when the traitor was close.Didn't it?
Her gaze drifted to Reyon.
He noticed.
"Why are you staring at me like that?" he asked, half-joking. "Do I have dust in my hair? A ghost on my shoulder?"
Seren gasped.Actually gasped.
Everyone turned to her.
Seren stared at Reyon's shoulder — eyes wide, horrified.
"There IS something on you," she whispered.
Reyon froze. "Okay WHAT— WHAT IS ON ME?!"
Seren shook her head. "Not… on you. Behind you. No— inside your illusion—"
Kai stepped forward instantly, Shadowsteel forming around him.
Reyon backed up, hands raised. "WHOA WHOA WHOA—KAI, I am NOT the traitor! Put the shadow sword DOWN!"
Kai didn't drop it.But his voice stayed steady."Seren. What do you see?"
Seren's eyes drifted between Reyon and his shadow.
"There's… a second shadow," she whispered."It moves when you don't."
Reyon's face paled. "WHAT?!"
Lina stepped between them. "Stop! SEREN — is it a Veilbound mimic? A resonance parasite? What?"
Seren shook her head violently. "No—no— it's not a creature— it's not alive— it's an imprint."
Kai's jaw tightened. "Meaning?"
Seren pointed with trembling fingers.
"Reyon's shadow… has been touched by the entity."
Silence slammed into the corridor.
Reyon laughed nervously. "Okay. Cool. Great. This is fine. Totally fine. Shadow-touch? Happens every day. You know what else happens every day? PANIC."
He started pacing.
Lina stepped forward, voice gentle. "Reyon… this doesn't mean you're the traitor."
Reyon stopped pacing.Looked at her.
"No? Then what does it mean? Because I'm seeing the math, Lina. And the math says: SHADOW + ENTITY = I am SO SCREWED."
Kai lowered his blade slightly — not entirely.
"What exactly do you sense, Seren?" he asked.
Seren's voice cracked.
"It feels like… like part of Reyon's resonance was touched. Marked. But not controlled."
Lina exhaled. "So he was affected… but not chosen."
Seren nodded. "Yes."
Reyon let out a huge breath. "THANK YOU— okay so I'm cursed, but not evil. That's progress."
But Kai didn't relax.
Not fully.
Lina could feel it — tension in his grip, the way his eyes kept flicking between her and Reyon.
The prophecy had shaken him.
"Betrayal will wear the face you trust."
They all trusted Reyon.
They all trusted Seren.
They all trusted Kai.
Who did the prophecy mean?
The corridor lights flickered.
The floor trembled faintly.
Lina's flame pulsed again — violently.
Kai caught her wrist.
"Lina? Again?"
Lina nodded slowly."It's reacting to… something ahead."
Reyon closed his eyes, concentrating.
"My illusions are picking up movement down the hall. Not a person. More like… pressure."
Seren's breath hitched. "The entity?"
"No," Reyon said softly."Something smaller.And closer."
Kai stepped in front of Lina again. "Stay behind me."
But Lina didn't.
She stepped beside him.
"Kai. If the prophecy is about me… I'm not hiding behind anyone."
He opened his mouth—closed it—and took her hand instead.
"Fine.But you stay connected to me.Always."
Reyon groaned. "Cute romantic moment. Terrible timing."
The corridor ahead shifted again.
A new doorway slid open—a smaller chamber, circular like the earlier one, but with a single object floating in the center.
A mask.
Black.Cracked.Veilbound design.
Kai stepped forward slowly. "Why would a Veilbound mask be here?"
Seren whispered, "It wasn't left."
Reyon nodded. "It was placed."
Kai's jaw clenched. "By who?"
Lina stepped closer.
Her flame responded instantly—a burning warning.
"Kai…" she whispered. "My flame doesn't like that mask."
He pulled her back.
Reyon's illusions flickered, showing images of the mask being worn — by a faceless figure.
Seren stepped closer, her eyes glowing faintly with Soul Echo sensitivity.
She whispered—
"It's not a mask."
Everyone turned.
Seren's voice shook.
"It's… a message.From the Veilbound."
Kai stiffened. "WHAT message?"
Seren swallowed.
"They know who the traitor is.""…and they want us to know too."
The mask cracked down the center.
And a whisper echoed through the chamber:
"The traitor is not the one you fear."
Silence.
Then another whisper:
"The traitor is the one you trust most."
Kai grabbed Lina's hand.
Reyon grabbed Seren's.
The door behind them slammed shut.
Lina's flame burst.
And for the first time—
Kai's hand trembled.
To be Continued© Kishtika., 2025All rights reserved.